Originally appeared on E! Online
Lady Gaga isn’t shy in talking about her occasionally bad romance with fame.
As the “Abracadabra” singer continues to roll out her "Mayhem" era, the name of her upcoming seventh album that’ll release in March, she’s reflecting on one of the pivotal moments in her career: how being away from the family she built in her native New York almost led her to retire from music.
“I missed the community that I had in New York and that was really hard,” Gaga told host Sean Evans during her Feb. 13 appearance on "Hot Ones." “There were definitely times where I felt like maybe I should walk away, but I know for sure that I never would.”
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Although that obstacle briefly “tested” her loyalty to being an artist, she noted she could never “give up” her dream. “I’m still doing it,” she continued, “so it must mean I want to do it.”
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Gaga, 38, also detailed her evolution as a performer and a new rule she now lives by. She’s no longer “overproducing” the artsy aesthetics in her stage design, a decision that was influenced by her performance at the 2010 BRIT Awards where she sang in front of a large 3D sculpture.
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“It was so early in my career, we just didn’t plan how it would get on and off the stage,” she said of the Nick Knight created statue. “The crew guys were like, ‘[This statue] is about as big as this arena, we cannot put this on stage. That was pretty expensive and a bad decision, so I definitely now try to be more resourceful and making less.”
The singer has kept her promise, as her most recent shows — including her surprise rendition of “Hold My Hand” at this year's Super Bowl — have been more minimalistic.
While Gaga is stripping away some drama from her live performances, she’s fully leaning into her creativity as a producer with her fiancé Michael Polansky. At the Los Angeles premiere of "Joker: Folie à Deux" Sept. 30, she described Polansky, who has producing credits on "Mayhem," as “brilliant.”
“He never ceases to amaze me,” Gaga told E! News at the time. “I’ve watched him in so many facets of business, in science and biotech, in philanthropy, and like somehow he’s also magic with music.”
